Through more than 40 developing community responses to poverty, Solid Ground seeks to identify and work on root, or structural, causes of poverty. Identifying effective strategies to undo generational poverty, we are increasingly focused on the education achievement gap and equity issues.

Today’s best research says that early childhood education is one of the cornerstones of future educational and life success. All children in our community should have the opportunity to begin their schooling with a high-quality education that is delivered by well-trained, well-paid educators in a sustainable system with long-term capacity.

The measure being promoted by Seattle Mayor Ed Murray and the Seattle City Council will create a pilot program for affordable pre-K that ramps up over time, emphasizes educational quality, and is priced on a sliding scale for low- and middle-income families. It will be funded by a property tax levy. Solid Ground supports this initiative and looks forward to working with the newly-forming City Department of Education & Early Learning.

While we are endorsing the City proposal, we are sensitive to concerns raised by the competing Initiative. The high cost of early childhood education has created class barriers to access. And the typical low-paying salaries belie the critical role early childhood professionals play in growing healthy communities. The bottom line: All children in Seattle should have equal access to high-quality early childhood education.